19 injured as minibus hits train at Channel Tunnel entrance near Calais
A minibus carrying truck drivers struck a vehicle shuttle train at the Channel Tunnel entrance in northern France on Thursday. Nineteen people were hurt, and car shuttle services were briefly suspended.
A minibus carrying truck drivers crashed into a vehicle-carrying shuttle train at the entrance to the Channel Tunnel in Coquelles, near Calais in northern France, on Thursday. Nineteen people were injured, and traffic on the busy link between France and England was briefly disrupted, French authorities said.
The injured
According to the regional administration, known as the prefecture, the minibus was approaching the tunnel when it veered off course and hit the side of the shuttle train. Two people were taken to hospital with serious but non-life-threatening injuries, and 17 had minor injuries. The minibus driver was among the injured.
Local official Agathe Cury told reporters the victims were of several nationalities and that the relevant consulates had been informed. She did not say which countries. All of the injured had been on the minibus, and all are men.
Traffic and investigation
About 200 emergency responders and other personnel went to the scene. Vehicle shuttle services through the tunnel were halted for 90 minutes and gradually resumed by late evening. Eurostar passenger trains and freight services were not affected.
The cause of the crash is unclear, and an investigation is under way. Cury said it was the first time such a crash had happened at the loading area for the trains that carry vehicles under the Channel. The tunnel opened in 1994 and handled 3.4 million vehicles last year, in addition to millions of Eurostar passengers.
